As breezy and amber-colored as Kacy & Clayton's new song “Strange Country” is, the Saskatchewan folk act's tune is actually about the delicious knot of anxiety that enters our stomachs when we arrive in any new place with unfamiliar customs and rituals. It's part of what makes travel feel like an adventure, but when you feel the tension twist up your guts as you cross the border, it's hard not to wish you knew the local dialect for, "Please help I'm being murdered."
The song's video starts out by mining a child-like sense of adventure, with Kacy & Clayton peeking around a house full of thingamabobs and crannies. They're actually at The WOMB, a compound belonging to The Flaming Lips in Oklahoma. That could explain why stuff gets pretty weird near the end. Here's Clayton Linthicum on how the clip got made:
Before we got to Oklahoma City to make the video, Kacy and I drove the Great Plains for two days straight. In a distance of five states, we saw about five people and interacted with about three. It was in this condition that we arrived at The WOMB. You can guess it was a bit shocking when we entered the gallery and hot pink, spongy mush covered all the walls and furniture. Through the hall we entered what looked like a giant piñata. This was George Salisbury's office. George and his crew took us all over Oklahoma City to shoot in various backyards, apartments, and living rooms. They introduced us to a whole mess of Flaming Lips roadies, a collector of tiki bar decor named Paco, and a super funky Chuck Berry album. On our last night at the WOMB, George and his crew taught us the ways of the green screen, and we taught them some phrases from our Saskatchewan dialect. It was a very educational experience.
Kacy & Clayton's new album Strange Country is out May 6 on New West Records.